Vanderbilt Commodores 2018 Football Preview
Opening Statement: Back to back blowout losses to Kentucky and Missouri had killed the Commodores bowl chances before they had a shot to beat Tennessee in the regular season finale in Knoxville. This has to be a critical year for head coach Derek Mason, as the has been to just one bowl in 4 years, and that ended in a 41-17 loss to NC State. With a record of 18-31 overall, it's safe to say that the legacy of James Franklin has largely not been protected and built upon, and that is a shame, as Vandy was becoming more relevant during Franklin's tenure. With another fairly tough slate to work through, can Mason do enough to save his own skin?
Breakdown Offense: One cannot feel as if the Kyle Shurmer years are not being largely wasted at Vanderbilt. He passed for 2823 yards and 26 TDs to 10 INTs last fall, and while accuracy was not the greatest with a completion rate of 57.9%, it wasn't entirely his fault. Deuce Wallace returns as the primary backup, but he should not be seeing the field much with Shurmer in his way.
The Commodores need a new starter at RB, with Ke'Shawn Vaughn slotted into that spot for now after becoming eligible post transfer from Illinois. He rushed for 723 yards as a freshman, and then fell off the grid with the staff at Illinois. Khari Blasingame should be the backup once again, but did little to establish himself last fall.
The Commodores will have 3 new starting WRs as well, which could make things tough on Shurmer. Kalija Lipscomb, Chris Pierce, and Donaven Tennyson are the penciled in starters for now. Lipscomb caught 37 passes for 610 yards, and led the team with 8 scores last season while averaging 16.49 yards per catch. He is the best of the bunch. Tennyson caught just 8 passes last fall, and Pierce caught none. There is no depth to speak of. Alex Stump, an Ohio State transfer who was eligible last season, never caught on.
Jared Pinckney is back to start at TE, and caught 22 passes last season, and could see an increased role in the passing game this fall with the developing situation ongoing at WR. Sam Dobbs should serve as his immediate backup.
The line returns 4 starters in Justin Skuls (LT), Egidio DellaRipa (C), Bruno Reagan (RG), and Devin Cochran (RT). Reagan has NFL draft potential at either C or G. Cole Clemons provides depth at Tackle, while Jared Southers adds depth inside. Sean McMoore should be the primary backup at Center.
Breakdown Defense: Onley 4 starters return on this side of the football for Vanderbilt. and Dare Odeyingbo is the lone starter to return on the line at DE. He led the team with 11 TFLs last season, and he added 4.5 sacks. Dayo Odeyingbo is penciled in to start at the opposite DE spot, and he finished with 4.5 TFLs and 2.5 sacks off the bench. Cameron Tidd is the projected starter at NT. Josiah Sa'o could push for time at NT as well. Drew Birchmeier will serve as a backup at the DE spots.
Charles Wright is the lone returning starter at LB. He totaled 42 tackles last fall, but only 18 of those were solo jobs. He did manage 10.5 TFLs, and he led the team with 9 sacks. Jordan Griffin, Andrew Rector, and Josh Smith are the projected new starters. Griffin totaled 62 tackles last fall, and Smith added 21. Rector totaled 4 in 9 games played. Caleb Peart could push for one of the starting spots as well, and he finished with 11 tackles as a sophomore. Alston Orji has massive potential at ILB as a true freshman.
JoeJuan Williams (CB) and FS LaDarius Wiley are the returning starters in the secondary. Williams finished with 10 PBUs last fall, but did not convert any of those into picks. Wiley totaled 5 PBUs and a pick, and led the team with 88 tackles. Donovan Sheffield should start at CB after playing in all 12 games last fall. Zaire Jones is the favorite to start at SS after appearing in 11 games as a freshman.
Breakdown Special Teams: Ryley Guay finally gets to rip the PK job away from the mess that was Tommy Openshaw. He has yet to attempt a live FG for the Commodores, despite being available last fall to do so. He did hit his lone PAT attempt. Javon Rice, a freshman, will push him for the job in fall camp.
Parker Thome is the Punter after transferring in from Columbia with a 42.7 yards per punt average.
Jamauri Wakefield should be the KR man after averaging 23.82 yards per return last fall. Lipscomb was rather pedestrian on PR duty after averaging 5.93 yards per return last fall, but should hold the job.
Final Analysis: With just the 4 starters coming back on offense, Kyle Shurmer has to be wondering why he did not just take the shot at the NFL last fall, as his numbers seemingly cannot get better with the cast he has coming back this fall. With a host of question marks, and a relatively tough schedule waiting on them, Vanderbilt could end up right back where they were a year ago, falling short of the bowl bid with around 5 wins. If anything goes wrong, or if injuries set in, it could get far worse, as there just is not a ton of depth available to rely on. Mason could be in real trouble here.
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